Safety Net
by SparkieSchteff
Summary: Oneshot: Vince meets someone on a roof who changes the way he lives his life. Warning: Contains reference to suicide and minor bad language. Rated T but will up to M if necessary


**Oh my gosh it's long, angsty and probably depressing in the beginning but yeah that's the mood I'm in for you. So when it's been a shit two weeks, the best thing to do is vent your anger right? So this is me venting through writing...I wasn't gonna post it but I actually like it.**

**Basically Vince meets someone on a roof who changes the way he acts. It's like 3000+ words, sorry! I didn't want to split it into chapters becuase I have my other story. So yeah, rambling now. If you read it I hope you enjoy it :)**

**Disclaimer: Everything Boosh is Barratt and Fielding's but the girl is from my own mind and isn't really based on anyway. She only exists in this**

**And finally a WARNING: This contains a slight reference to suicide and contains minor swearing. I will up the rating to M if anyone is offended. I'm sorry if it upsets anyone, I don't mean to upset or offend. **

**xxx**

**Safety net**

I love sitting down somewhere that's high up, like a balcony or a hill, and just looking down at the scenes around me but looking up is different. I like it too; I love looking up at the stars, the clouds or the sunset. I never see the sun rise because I'm never ever up that early, why get up at a ridiculous time just to sit and watch the sun rise when you can easily sit after a full night and half the morning sleep, blissfully awake next to the window or on a grassy hill or beach and watch the sun rising in reverse. You have to think of it like a tape recorder; record the sun setting then rewind it slowly in your head. And there you have a sunrise.

So I'm used to looking up but I was a bit surprised, maybe shocked to suddenly look up and notice someone sat on the ledge of a building crying their heart out while starring across the city before them. My heart sort of stopped for a second, I kind of died just for a short moment when I thought this person was going to throw themselves off the little ledge but when they didn't after a couple more seconds my heart started to pump again and my brain kicked in.

The person didn't see me but I could see them as I emerged from the hairdressers with three Topshop bags and two Primark ones clutched in my hands. I had been shopping all day, I only really needed a new jacket but I saw too many nice things so I thought why not and bought what I liked. Then I went to get my hair cut and re-dyed, sometimes I dye it myself but I like the feel of the head massage you get when the hairdresser washes your hair before they begin doing anything else to it. And the shampoo and conditioner smells great, smells really fruity and sort of soothes you, almost made me fall asleep on the chair with one of those black and white sheets wrapped round my neck protecting my clothes from hair clippings and hair dye. The hair stuff smelt like apricot today.

The crier on the rooftop was a woman; she looked distressed but was very pretty indeed. Quite skinny, petite size maybe, long brunette hair that was unfortunately getting matted by her salty tears. I wanted to go sort it out for her but she looked like she needed a hug more than anything so that's what I did. I ventured up the block of flats to offer a simple hug.

The stairs tired me out, try carrying all your shopping up several flights of stairs just to get to the roof to give someone a cuddle. And I didn't even know her. But she was pretty.

When I made it I couldn't help but glance up at the stars which were slowly coming into view, the blue chipped door banged shut behind me making her jump and fling her head round in my direction, I assured her with a secure smile but she didn't move, didn't flinch and didn't even return the grin. The cheek!

"Hey there, I'm Vince. What's your name?" I asked soothingly with my world-famous grin plastered all over my face.  
"I'm…" She began through sobs, I moved forward slowly still smiling gently.  
"Can I come over?" And to my surprise she nodded then wiggled her bum a little on the ledge, it must have lost all feeling and gone numb but I didn't really stop to ask that, just a side thought as I dumped my shopping next to the little wall and swung my legs over to sit next to her "Pretty high up here, in't it?" I grinned, I probably looked like a dizzy child to her, maybe she thought I was insane at first "So, what's your name?" I tried again.  
"My name is Elizabeth. People call me Izzy or Iz."  
"What about Liz?" I asked curiously but she shook her head "Beth?" I tried again trying to make conversation but again she shook her head and sniffed loudly "Lizzy?" I stressed the 'y' but she didn't look amused or interested but at least this time she spoke.  
"Sometimes, yeah."  
"Cool. How old are you Lizzy? Can I call you Lizzy? Or do you want me to call you Elizabeth?" I don't know why I was nervous about what to call her, I guess it was because she was pretty.  
"Yeah, you can call me Lizzy…" She sniffed loudly again and a couple of tears fell down her cheeks "I'm twenty four years old." She informed me and I smiled a little but I still didn't get anything out of her.  
"Nice view up here, in't it?"  
"Suppose."  
"Course it is! We got the Moon, the stars are starting to come out, the streetlights are on, and you can see neon signs for bars everywhere! Looks ace."  
"If you say so." She mumbled casting her gaze out over whatever I was gawking at. Din't think that word would be in my vocabulary, did you?  
"So what's your story, Iz?" Then she looked at me and I could see her face properly for the first time.

Her eyes were stinging red and puffy from all the crying she had been doing, her nose had been rubbed red raw and didn't look too inviting, her hair was a tangled mess, her sleeves were dripping wet with wiping tears away and little splats of water stood out on her skinny jeans. She looked a mess but she still looked pretty.

"My best friend." She started and I listened. I wanted to spring in and tell her all about my best friend and how we were like two halves of a complete person and all that stuff but instead I just stopped and took the time to listen. I nodded at the right moments of course and uttered the odd 'yeah' and 'okay', stuff like that to make her feel a little more comfortable "You see…She treats me like crap." I nodded my head once "But I let her…Y'know? Because she's my best friend and everythin' and I can't live without her…We're…We're like…" That's when I butted in and helped finish her sentence, you could probably guess what I said right?  
Well here's what I said anyway.  
"Like two halves of a complete person?" My voice had dropped a little, you could tell I was being serious now and it scared me slightly. But she turned to me with a glint of hope in her eyes, her eyes which were a nice shade of hazel by the way and nodded her head madly.  
"Yes, yes! Exactly like that." I nodded my head and she carried on "We're just complete opposites but something clicks. She can be an arsehole though, a complete and utter bitch sometimes."  
"What has she done?" I asked while she took a moment to gather her thoughts and control her awful crying.

That's when everything spilt from her, even more tears and stuff from her nose yet she still remained pretty, maybe even gorgeous.

She told me that her friend was slightly rubbish towards her, okay so she didn't put it like that but I am so deal with it. Apparently her friend had borrowed her clothes without asking just to fill a charity bag that had come through the post, I didn't laugh at this, didn't even find it funny which you probably think I would have. Her friend even 'accidentally smashed a precious heirloom' as she put it, that belonged to her. It was a gift from her grandmother and her friend had broken it at a house party she had thrown in their flat. Again I didn't smile or tell her that she could just 'buy a new one'.  
Then she explained about other things, about how this girl always got the perfect boyfriends but how she would always bring them home and shag them on the sofa while Izzy was trying to read a magazine or do some coursework for University or something then mentioned how every boyfriend she has ever had, had always screwed her over in some form or another. I felt sorry for her and wanted to cuddle her but resisted simply because she did not know me at all. Then she told me her friend went out in her car, smashed it, brought it back and denied she had done anything when Elizabeth saw her pull up in her own demolished car. I felt really sorry for her then asked her a question which left an awkward pause in the air.  
"So why are you up here?"

I shouldn't have asked but then I didn't know what else to ask, it left a weird lump in my throat as I watched her bend her face towards her legs and cry hysterically, my reactions kicked in thinking she was going to fall forward's and land on her pretty head so I reached out and clutched her shoulders. She jumped a little but then to my surprise, flung herself up and threw her arms around my neck, I had to grasp the wall instead to stop us wobbling and falling together. She cried on my shoulder maniacally, into a stranger's shoulder, into an unfamiliar shoulder and I wanted to cry too. I wanted my tears to leak onto her unfamiliar hair as though we were together or as though we had known each other for years. I wanted to cry myself because it was like me with Howard, her friend was me and she was Howard. I was the arsehole friend who treated him like crap and I felt terrible. This sudden wave of guilt, anger, sadness…All the negative emotions all packed into one great big tidal wave swept me under and nearly drowned me, my sunlight had been extinguished and I wanted it back.

"Hey, hey…" I soothed, I never really was any good at calming someone down who was in floods of tears and it was especially hard now that I felt pretty close to tears too. And I don't know why people used 'hey' to calm someone when 'hey' is a way of saying 'hello' and 'hi', it's just daft I think "It'll be okay."  
"No it won't!" She blurted out "God I don't even know what I'm doing…I'm sat on a ledge about to jump off…Sat with a guy I don't know anything about, a guy I've never seen before! And…" She was stuck for words and stuttered a little.  
"Do you want me to go?"  
"Oh god no!" She pulled her head away from my shoulder and stared at me with scared eyes so I instinctively pulled her closer.  
"It doesn't matter that you don't know me. I'm an al-" I was gonna say an 'alright guy' but I'm not am I? An 'alright guy' doesn't treat his best friend like shite "I'm just your average guy…Who loves shopping and anything shinny." Now I was trying to get a smile or maybe even a laugh out of her "I'm not a rapist or a murderer…I didn't have to come up here, but when I saw you looking all upset I just had to." I guess this was me trying re light my sunshine within "I don't want you to jump. Everything's not as bad as you think…And death…Death scares me." It was true, it did and still does "Come on, let's…Let's get off this wall, get on the roof and we can go…Shopping? I'll take you shopping! To all the best shops, Topshop, Primark…Topman? Maybe not Topman, what do you like? What are your favourite shops?" She laughed slightly then at my nervousness and the way I was rambling on, she laughed and pulled out of the hug and smiled at me "What?" I asked uncertainly as though something had happened to my hair or there was something on my face.  
"Nothing…It's just…I don't know really…You're sweet."  
"Thanks." I blushed slightly but only because I secretly fancied her which isn't much of a secret now is it?  
"And my favourite shop is Borders." She said it a little quietly as though she were ashamed but I simply smiled back.  
"They do great coffee there; do you want to go for coffee? Shopping and coffee?"  
"We can't go shopping, it's nearly midnight." She smiled gently after glancing at her watch; it wasn't an especially interesting watch. Just one with brown leather straps and a gold watch face.  
"Coffee then? My treat, come on…" I guess I sounded desperate now…All I wanted to do was pull her away from the ledge that we were both swinging our legs over. Suddenly I felt nauseous and wobbly just from glancing down towards the cold hard pavement.

"I don't even know why I want to jump." She began, she had changed the subject from the coffee, which made my heart beat a little faster "Well I do, my friend…I guess everything finally crashed down on me and I freaked out." She turned to me then "What should I do, Vince?"  
"Hmm?" I asked uncertainly, it sounded like a bit of a daft question to me so I wanted her to explain.  
"What should I do? Should I jump and pray I die when I hit the pavement?" I winced slightly but I don't think she noticed "Or should I go for coffee with a complete stranger?"  
"But I am a cute complete stranger right?" I winked and she giggled then all of a sudden I found myself shakily throwing a leg back over the wall then holding her hand as she too got off the ledge to stand on the roof with me. We hugged, I was shocked that she just flung her arms round my neck but I liked it. She thanked me deeply while we found a Starbucks and drank coffee, my feet kicked my shopping several times but I guess I felt nervous, which is strange for me seeing as I'm a pretty confident person.

"So Vince, you haven't told me much about yourself." She struck up the conversation, she still looked tired and down, her eyes weren't leaking anymore but they were still red. She twirled a finger through the cream on top of her hot chocolate that I had bought her and sucked it off before taking a sip, I saw her jump slightly because the drink was too hot.  
"What's there to tell?" I shrugged; for once I couldn't be bothered to go into detail about my life. I thought most people knew about me but obviously I was wrong and I liked the fact that I was wrong and that this girl didn't know me. She didn't fall for me for just my looks alone; she was actually interested in my background which most girls I know aren't. Most I meet only want to bed me but this one didn't, well not straight away anyway. So as I sat in Starbucks chatting with this amazingly pretty girl I felt a weird feeling in my stomach, like butterflies. I was falling for her, I was falling for the girl who had just fallen straight into my safety net and I loved it. I had practically saved her from death, a death she didn't need and most probably didn't want, and I was actually proud of myself for once.

"Vince…I can't thank you enough, really I can't. Everything we talked about just made me realise that life is worth more." I nodded once as we stood at her doorway to her flat. The door was painted blue but wasn't chipped like the one on the roof, she rummaged in her pockets and found an old bus ticket and stretched it out trying to get rid of some of the folds and creases "Wouldn't have a pen on you would you?" She asked hopefully as I searched in my tight pockets on my jeans.  
"Uhm is an eyeliner pencil ok?" I offered it her and she took it smiling while sniffing loudly, that reminded me of her in tears.  
"That's great if you don't mind me using it." She took it and scribbled something down on the paper then folded it and pushed it into my palm along with my eyeliner pencil "Thank you." She grinned while fishing her keys from her jeans as well, she stuck the right one in the door but stopped as though she wanted to prevent the moment I walked away from her door and leave her to her old life, but it's not really her old life anymore is it? I sort of made it new and fresh for her "Bye." She reached up and kissed me once on the cheek then smiled shyly and disappeared into her flat. I stood for a second on the spot grinning stupidly, it felt odd but nice. Normally if she were one of the usual girls we would have made out for about ten minutes before fumbling inside her flat to have hot passionate sex. But this girl was different and I loved that about her.  
And did I mention she was pretty?

When I got back to my own flat it was gone half past two in the morning, I dumped my keys after locking the door and slung my purchases against the wall. Howard was sat upstairs in the flat; he'd obviously been waiting for me. Three books lay shut on the floor and one was open on his lap, the minute he saw me it was snapped shut angrily making me wince slightly.  
"Where the hell have you been?" He asked straight away standing up. I said nothing; I simply approached him and hugged him. I felt him tense and heard him stutter a little because I know he hates being touched but I didn't care. I had been a shit friend and I needed to make it up to him. Somehow. So for a start, I hugged him and didn't tell him about the girl I met and the life I saved. I left that out, I simply hugged him, apologised and went to bed leaving my new clothes, shoes and accessories with the receipts in the bags.

It was only when I was inside my own room with the door shut that I opened the piece of paper in my hand and read what was on it, a phone number. Elizabeth's phone number; I smiled instantly then read the added note underneath it. The eyeliner pencil had come off in chunks creating smudges on the paper but it was still readable. It only read one short sentence under her number which made me grin like a girl and nearly well up and cry. It simply said, 'Thank you for being my safety net' but it meant so much more to me.


End file.
